The one international trade exhibition in Africa for all sectors of the professional cleaning industry, CleantexPulire, is set to take place in Johannesburg South Africa from 28th - 30th July 2015.

Next year's event will mark the 10th edition of this exhibition, established in 1998 to build a platform for African cleaning professionals to congregate, view the latest product innovations, network and create new business opportunities.more

Funds advised by European private equity firm, BC Partners, have reached an agreement to sell Spotless Group SAS to Henkel AG & Co. KGaA for an enterprise value of €940 million. Completion is subject to approval from European antitrust authorities.more

"27 is the number to remember," says RCM's Marzia Mucci. "But it's not about the victory of some stable or pilot, or a particular anniversary. It refers to the period of time since when RCM has been cleaning the world's fastest circuit in Formula 1.

"Every year, starting from Friday - the day of free practice - until Sunday, when the race takes place, RCM sweepers help to keep Monza circuit, and its service areas, clean and safe.more

Japan is well known for its comic-loving culture so it's probably the one place where you might expect to catch a real superhero in action, writes Melissa Hobbs. Cue Mangetsu-man (translated as Mr. Full Moon), who has taken to the streets of Tokyo and revealed his special powers - a dustpan, brush and broom.more

Kaivac, known for innovation, has announced that it has just been awarded its 13th patent from the US Patent Office. The latest patent is for the company's Smart Towel System, which was introduced about five years ago.more

An advisory committee to the Food & Drug Administration in the US has been told that unreasonable FDA restrictions on healthcare use of safe and effective antibacterial ingredients could jeopardise the safety of patients and healthcare workers alike.more

The first ever ISSA/Interclean Istanbul event is poised to create an interesting learning experience by providing insight in Turkey, the Middle Eastern and Northern African region, says the show organiser.

Being staged in the city that bridges East and West, Turkey has one of the fastest growing economies in Europe and one that is expected to be the second fastest growing market in the world by 2020, so expectations are high.more

As part of its strong commitment to food safety, the National Restaurant Association in the US has announced that this year's National Food Safety Month (NFSM), held annually in September, will mark its 20-year anniversary by featuring the top 20 food safety tips from the past 20 years.more

NASA research shows Earth's atmosphere contains an unexpectedly large amount of an ozone-depleting compound from an unknown source decades after the compound was banned worldwide.more

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Anyone who visited England over the Summer holidays will have quickly realised that we have a litter problem. I despair when walking into Epsom to my weekend office, at the discarded takeaway food cartons, empty bottles and general rubbish that I have to pick my way around. Don’t people care or are they too drunk to notice? And of course it’s not just weekend revellers, but the lazy, the ignorant, the selfish and the badly brought up, at all times of the day – any day – that blight our public places with their unwanted items, seemingly oblivious to the problems they cause. What to do about it though?

Some local authorities have enjoyed real success in catching and fining litterers, (although others have taken it to ridiculous extremes, with one person fined because a thread fell off their jacket, and another fined for dropping money)!

If you see someone dropping litter, do you take London Mayor Boris Johnson’s preferred course of action and hand it back to them, or do you pick it up and bin it yourself, or simply ignore it?

I understand that volunteers clearing litter in a Derbyshire town recently were – instead of being praised by the local council and thanked for their good citizenship – told to ‘down tools’ because they’d not been trained to use litter picking equipment. I also gather that several thousand fly tipping incidents went unprosecuted in Derby last year so there was obviously a need for some clearing up; unfortunately the council was too afraid to accept help in case the volunteers injured themselves and sued the council as a result!

I wonder whether anyone has sued their local authority for back injuries caused in moving a full wheelie bin to the front of their property (or down the lane to a collection point) for emptying, or cuts sustained through washing up tins or removing staples from cardboard so they can be recycled. I can’t help feeling that if everyone took responsibility for binning their own rubbish and admitted when accidents were down to their own careless behaviour (rather than blaming someone else with a view to claiming compensation) life would be a lot easier.

The newly published '2014 Deep Research Report on Global and China Steam Cleaner Industry' is a professional, in-depth research report on the global steam cleaner industry, with a separate focus on the Chinese market. It spans 190 pages and includes 180-plus data tables and more than 20 company profiles.more

Mary de Cobos of Futureclean Assured Systems, follows up her previous article on cleaning mould, which featured in last week's Cleanzine...

It is essential that the health & safety issues are considered and in this article we will discuss these in greater detail.

Any cleaning company will almost certainly come across mould deposits and their removal even if it is only in someone's bathroom; however moulds will always be present in hidden places, damp ducting, after fire and flooding, in a damp atmosphere and always where some water ingress is to be found. Mould is even to be found in diesel fuel tanks as part of biofilm contamination and it is one of the big problems on ships. So it's widespread and the air that you breathe is full of mould spores.more

"This piece is essentially not quite accurate, there are over 10,000 recognisable moulds and perhaps over a million are not yet classified, so saying all mould likes cellulosic materials, should be clarified.

"Mould grows on organic materials, it will grow on glass which has dust skin or dander, not just cellulosic materials. A study of moulds will show some species will grow in desert like conditions, some are hydrophobic, and some hydrophilic, further if Borax is banned in the EU, surely it's not recommended to be used. Therefore saying it's available on line, is suggesting an illegal use. How would you square that in a risk assessment?more

Vital supplies are being airlifted to help curb the Ebola outbreak in Sierra Leone by hygiene specialist Chemex. The company has donated several tons of high level hypochlorite disinfectants and hand soaps to help improve infection control. The supplies are being distributed via the Glasgow-based Scotia Aid charity.

Since the start of the outbreak it is estimated that more than 2,400 people have died from the virus.more

Many companies consider reducing their environmental impact as an integral goal of their business and for several years have been applying environmentally conscious practices as a result. However, despite the increased awareness and desire to 'go green' there is still a surprising amount which could be being done.more

writes Robin Chater, Secretary-General of the Federation of International Employers

"Europe is failing its next generation because neither the European Union, nor national governments are able to tackle over-regulation and the grey economy.

As delegates gather next week at a Brussels conference convened by the European Commission to consider 'Labour economics after the crisis', Manuel will still be sitting with his unemployed friends making a coffee last all morning in a crowded McDonald's in Zaragoza. He is just one of the 56% of 15-24 year olds in Spain who are still without work... The victim of a downturn that never went away and a system of employment laws that discourage employers from generating permanent job opportunities.more

UMF Corporation's new PerfectClean SDX bucketless mop system made its debut this week at Exchange 2014, the Association for the Healthcare Environment annual educational event in the US.

"SDX stands for Superior Design and eXecution - translation: the SDX is ergonomically designed to foster increased productivity," said George Clarke, CEO of UMF Corporation, a leading developer of high-performance products and accessories for public health and safety. "We are proud to stamp the SDX with our highly respected PerfectClean brand name."more

Italian brand Klindex, is making sure its floor maintenance machines are readily available in the US, by opening up offices and a warehouse in Brooklyn, New York.

Klindex has been manufacturing cleaning and polishing machines since 1988 and its machines are professional, strong and easy to use: ideal for floor polishing marble, granite, terrazzo and concrete.more

When bespoke building and shopfitting expert Oakland Projects was renovating and modernising a four-storey Victorian house in West London it was quickly decided that the frontage of the building required specialist attention.

Decades of weathering and air pollution had left the Victorian brickwork in a poor state with oxidisation of the surface as well as metallic and carbon staining. more

Another delighted customer arrived at Morclean's premises earlier this month to take delivery of his new Morclean trailer-mounted wheelie bin wash machine.

Beating off tough competition to seal the deal, Morclean's director Peter Morley handed over the keys on the new machine to Milton Keynes based cleaners, Cleaner Bins MK - a company setting up a franchise operation that specified the machine in its corporate colours - black and yellow.more

Harrison Wipes has announced its sponsorship of the 9th Annual Institute of Directors 'Aspirations in Business 2014' event. The event is focused on inspiring and encouraging the next generation of Essex students, aged 16 - 19, to become the business leaders of the future.more

Almost a quarter (24%) of UK based businesses believe that their marketing isn't performing as it should be, with a third of these (33%) complaining that the difficulty of making an impact with the advertising they do, is the biggest barrier to success.more

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Here's how to get rid of mould... All mould loves cellulosic material - so all wallpaper, grout, plaster and plasterboard and wood, carpet - in short all household fixtures and fittings, are subject to mould contamination and it isn't easy to get rid of.

Where does it come from? Damp.

1. In a big old house the damp course could easily be compromised, assuming that there is one in the first place. 2. From broken gutters, window frames, holes in worn brickwork and grout, leaking roofs and tree roots... Damp wicks through the brickwork and wall finishings. As it dries off, the mould grows on the cellulosic material. 3. From high humidity in unventilated bathrooms and showers, but also in 50/50 humid atmospheres.more

It's no secret that regular floor maintenance saves contractors from the time-consuming deep cleans, while also saving your carpets too. But is this a solution that is sat right in front of many, but completely overlooked?

This case study as Mike Egerton, MD of Host Von Schrader UK, explains may be an eye opener - after all, every little helps.more

Bunzl has made four further acquisitions in the UK with aggregate annualised revenue of £34.8 million.

The company acquired 365 Healthcare at the end of June. Based in Droitwich, the business is engaged in the distribution of mainly own brand healthcare products, principally operating theatre drapes and gowns, procedure packs, disposable surgical instruments and dressings, to a variety of customers including hospitals, GP practices and private clinics. Revenue was £10.9 million in the year ended 31st December 2013.more

City University London, which is ranked within the top 5% of universities in the world, has appointed specialist education cleaning company, Julius Rutherfoord, to maintain its 915,000 ft, 22-site campus in London EC1.more

When faced with a life changing situation almost 40 years ago, Christine Beedle founded Monthind Clean. As a new generation of directors take over the company's helm, Christine, who was awarded an MBE for services to the cleaning industry, launches her first book.more

Landlords, property owners and facilities managers now face hefty fines if they fail to comply with the Legionella legislation, recently updated by the Health & Safety Executive.

The revised legislation deals with the control of risks associated with Legionella, a water-borne bacteria, which can have serious and often fatal consequences if it develops into Legionnaire's disease.more

In response to your latest 'soapbox' article on the need for a BS cleaning standard, there already exists a European standard 'BS EN 15221-2:2006. Facility management. Guidance on how to prepare facility management agreements' which may cover the issue, but at a cost of £192, few people are likely to buy it.more

Businesses usually review progress through monthly reporting. Within a typical monthly report will be a set of slides and/or spreadsheets that purport to contain all of the information required to make decisions for the following month(s).more

While it is obligatory for UK quoted companies to report greenhouse gas emissions, it is becoming increasingly essential for all businesses, big or small, to highlight their environmental credentials by measuring and reducing their carbon footprint.more

Mary de Cobos of Futureclean Assured Systems comments on the recent Equalities & Human Rights Commission's reports on the cleaning industry and explains how she feels that we as an industry can put things right:

I write regarding commentary on the recently released EHRC reports on pay and conditions in the commercial cleaning industry (1 & 2) (13-08-2014) and the report on contractual conditions for cleaning companies (3). As consultants and developers in cleaning systems and well experienced cleaners ourselves, the following are our observations about these reports.more

With this year's Ladder Exchange now underway, the Ladder Association is again asking for submissions to its Idiots on Ladders contest, which has the public send in the worst pictures of ladder use they can find, to show just how dangerous it can be to misuse a ladder.more

Brayborne Facilities Services has won eight new cleaning contracts totalling £1.5 million over three years, in schools across the south of England, strengthening the company's presence in the specialist education sector.more

Weltec Biopower (UK), based in Stoneleigh, Warwickshire, has been granted the contract to extend the award-winning food waste AD plant in Piddlehinton, Dorset. Plant owner Eco Sustainable Solutions is expanding with a further 1.1MW of food waste processing capacity.more